Deanna Sullivan went a combined 4-for-8 with five RBI to lead the St. Lawrence University softball team to a split with Union in a Liberty League doubleheader on Friday at Saints Softball Field.
She sophomore shortstop from Thousand Oaks, California, went 2-for-4 with one RBI in a 4-2 win in the opener, then went 2-for-4 with four RBI in an 8-5 loss in the nightcap.
With the split, the Saints remain one game behind Union for fourth place in the conference standings with just four games left to play. The top four teams will earn a spot in the Liberty League tournament.
Game 1: St. Lawrence 4, Union 2
Sullivan got the Saints' offense started right out of the gate, scoring on a wild pitch after leading off the bottom of the first with a bloop single down the left field line and advancing around to third base on a sacrifice bunt and a groundout to the left side.
She upped the lead to 2-0 with a bases loaded single in the second, scoring one run.
Union cut the lead to one with an RBI single by Dana Dolinko in the third, but the Saints restored the two-run margin on an RBI single by
Angelina Carney in the bottom half of the frame.
Elle Gray plated another on a hard ground ball up the middle in the fourth to give St. Lawrence a 4-1 lead.
Pinch runner Rebecca Kaufman scored an unearned run in the top of the sixth when the ball bounced off a St. Lawrence fielder's glove on a single by Catherine Raeter, which allowed Kaufman to score from second base.
Carney and Gray were both 2-for-3 for the Saints, while Union's Kim Puzo was 2-for-3 and Dolinko was 2-for-4.
Caroline Young got the win, scattering seven hits over 5.2 innings with two runs (one earned) allowed. Young, who entered the day ranked 52nd nationally in walks allowed per seven innings, did not walk a batter.
Madison Mitchell got the save, pitching the final 1.1 innings and allowing one hit and one walk with two strikeouts.
Makayla Koehler took the loss, allowing all four runs (two earned) on eight hits and one walk with two strikeouts. Raeter was perfect in two innings of relief for the Dutchwomen.
Game 2: Union 8, St. Lawrence 5
Puzo hit a bases-clearing double in the fifth inning to give Union its first lead of the day, and Courtney Casey was 3-for-4 with two RBI to lead Union to a win in the second game to split the doubleheader.
The Saints took a 3-0 lead in the second inning, with
Alexandra Barter plating the first run on a bases-loaded walk and Sullivan adding a two-run single to left, but Union came right back with three runs in the top of the third. Casey hit a two-run single to right, then scored on a double off the left field wall by Kendall Rogoff to tie the game.
Casey loaded the bases on a perfect bunt down the first base line in the fifth, setting up Puzo's three-run double, which gave the Dutchwomen a 6-3 lead. Kayla Fisher added an RBI single later in the inning to push Union's lead to 7-3.
Sullivan cut the lead to 7-5 with a two-run single up the middle in the sixth, with Mitchell sliding in from second and just beating the throw at home plate, but Fisher added an insurance run with an RBI single in the eighth, and Raeter retired the Saints 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning to end the game.
Mitchell was 2-for-3 with a double for the Saints, while Fisher was 2-for-3 with two RBI for Union.
Dolinko got the win for Union, allowing five runs on seven hits and two walks with two strikeouts in five-plus innings. Raeter allowed just one hit in the final two innings to earn the save for the Dutchwomen.
Allie Courtwright took the loss in relief of Mitchell. Mitchell pitched 2.1 innings, allowing three runs on three hits and two walks in 2.1 innings. Courtwright allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits in two innings of work, while Young pitched the final 2.2 innings, allowing one run on four hits.
Records: Union (7-17, 5-5 Liberty League); St. Lawrence (12-14, 4-6).
Up Next: At RPI, Saturday, April 28, 1 p.m.
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